


Prey

by tripleyeeet



Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Angst, Avenger Loki (Marvel), Because it was BAD, But Like Hopefully Better Than Suicide Squad, Dark Comedy, Enemies to Lovers, Eventual Romance, F/M, Inspired by Suicide Squad (2016), Loki (Marvel) Does What He Wants, Loki (Marvel) Has Issues, Superfamily (Marvel), more like frenemies to lovers
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-02-20
Updated: 2021-03-05
Packaged: 2021-03-17 11:34:58
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 6
Words: 14,817
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29592201
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/tripleyeeet/pseuds/tripleyeeet
Summary: Tired of dealing with high risk mutant threats, SHIELD comes up with a new initiative task force to help better handle their behaviours, prompting a group of misfit heroes to join in on the Avengers fun.
Relationships: Loki (Marvel)/Original Female Character(s)
Comments: 3
Kudos: 26





	1. Chapter 1

THERE WERE ONLY EVER TWO INSTANCES THAT AVIS FOUND HERSELF IN HANDCUFFS.

The first being that one time she was on vacation with her ex boyfriend and feeling exceptionally nice, and the second being now, sitting in the questioning room of her local precinct.

"I swear I didn't kill him on purpose," she said, voice cracking, words dripping with desperation. She was seated across the table from the same pair of officers that responded to the scene, both of them staring at her with an equal lack of interest as she tried to explain her side of the story.

"So it was an accident?" The one on the left asked. His tone was boring, unresponsive, and frankly unsurprising as he cocked his brow and leaned forward, resting his wrists against the tabletop.

Nodding her head, Avis watched the expression of slight amusement quickly form across his face, causing her stomach to drop. She knew the second that they'd found her half naked in the alleyway, standing over top of the man she'd basically just cut in half, that she was completely and hopelessly fucked, because unlike with her previous offences, she couldn't bounce back from what looked like first degree murder, especially considering there were definitely witnesses.

With that kind of proof, no sane justice system would ever let her off the hook for something so brutalizing; meaning that she was definitely getting charged, meaning that it was only a matter of time before _they_ found her.

"Well, okay, it wasn't an accident. I killed him, but he tried to kill me first and I—"

Before she could finish her sentence, the other man raised his palm, silencing her immediately. "Look, Ms. Finch, with all due respect, you killed a man, so whether it was self-defence of not doesn't really matter."

Offended, Avis narrowed her eyes. "But he attacked me."

"Yes, but you murdered him."

"But he attacked _me_ ," she repeated through gritted teeth, motioning to herself.

At the change of her tone, the two men glanced at one another with tired eyes, causing Avis to sink into the depths of her seat in defeat. It was painfully obvious then that no amount of convincing would get her out of this. She was either going to rot in prison or be handed over to the very people she hoped to never see again; neither of which option seemed appealing in the slightest.

"Yeah, well, we have key witnesses who claim otherwise."

"You mean those people on the street who did literally fucking nothing to help me?"

While it was true that it was her fault for killing him in such an exposed area, she also felt that it was partly the fault of others for not doing anything to deescalate the situation. Because when the attack initially happened she distinctively remembered crying out for help —looking them in the eyes to get their attention— but nobody did anything. Instead, they just stood there, frozen with fear, watching as her attacker wrapped his hands around her throat and slammed her against the exposed brick of the building, all while threatening to take her life away.

"Clearly they didn't _need_ to help you, Ms. Finch," the first man deadpanned, staring directly at her.

As soon as they made eye contact Avis narrowed her eyes, feeling her heart begin to sputter with rage, because, like usual, the system was once again against her; falsely building her up only to break her down again.

Back in the day, things were so much easier. People like her could get away with virtually anything they wanted without consequence. She could do whatever she wanted whenever she wanted, but _now?_ Now there were rules; regulations with hidden agendas so that people like her —people who were _mutated_ — could be manipulated into doing the bidding of those lesser.

It was the same reason she'd gone into hiding in the first place. A previous slip up had gotten out of hand and instead of addressing the problem head on like she knew she should've done, she instead decided to just disappear, resulting in a target to be put on her back.

At the time it didn't seem like a big deal. People already were constantly watching her anyway; hunting her like she was some sort of animal just because she was different. So, it wasn't surprising to her that suddenly another set of eyes had locked onto her.

Over the course of her life the number of interested parties had grown larger and larger, all of them threatening her freedom. It was fear inducing to say the least, having to be on edge all the time, and frankly Avis was tired.

She was tired of all the fighting. Of all the people interrupting her life at the most inconvenient of times at an attempt to get her to join whatever the fuck their cause was at the time. All she wanted was some peace and quiet —to be left alone for one _goddamn_ minute so that she could take some time to think about something other than whether or not she was going to die or get sucked into some political scam like the rest of the fucking mutants on this planet just trying to live their lives.

"Ms. Finch, can you describe the nature of your relationship to the victim?"

Suppressing the urge to roll her eyes, Avis shuffled in her seat and cleared her throat in preparation to lie her ass off, knowing that if they found out the truth they'd for sure turn her over to higher-ups faster than she could find a way to possibly escape.

"There was no prior relationship, sir."

Once again unimpressed, the man on the left took the reins of the conversation, clicking his tongue against the roof of his mouth as he glanced downward and opened the file folder in front of him. "Says here that there was, ma'am."

"Says where?"

"In the file," he replied matter-of-factly, tapping it with his pointer. "Witness reports say that during the altercation outside of your apartment you not only said his name twice, but that you were quote, _sorry for everything that had happened_."

"I said his name because he told it to me and I apologized because I thought I did something wrong."

"And why would you think that?"

This time Avis actually rolled her eyes. "With all due respect sir, as a woman in this day and age, when a six-foot-three man comes barging into your apartment in the middle of the night when you're trying to sleep, threatening your life while dragging you outside a dimly lit alleyway, you tend to assume that maybe you did something wrong."

"Can you give us an example?"

"I don't know, maybe I rejected him or something? Guys like that tend to get pretty pissed off when they're not given something they want."

"Guys like," pausing to look back at the file, the man on the left narrowed his eyes, bringing it closer to his face. "Aaron Hook?"

"Is that his name?" Avis questioned, widening her eyes in surprise, even though she already knew that. The second she'd locked eyes with him in her apartment she knew exactly who he was. 

He was a part of one of the local gangs that had been tailing her for quite some time, trying to recruit her to help in getting revenge against the police due to an increase in mutant brutality. At first they had approached her directly; called her up, made a proper meeting, but like all other jobs she'd been offered over the years, she rejected it, leaving them sour.

It was something that always happened whenever she refused to take sides in the ongoing human vs. mutant debacle. To her, humans would always be humans and mutants the same —getting involved wouldn't do her any good, so she just stayed out of it.

Or _tried_ , at least. Obviously, with instances like these —the ones where people got angry and tried to kill her— her participation was forced, causing an upset in her perfectly planned out system.

Which was annoying, because lately she was starting to feel almost normal. She'd gotten a job and a house and was doing normal person things like going to the grocery store and taking naps in front of the television. She was actually _living_ for once, moving day by day with little to no confrontation from outside forces, which now she realized was probably her downfall.

She'd let her guard down too quickly; let her emotions get the best of her when push came to shove, and now she was facing the consequences, sitting here handcuffed to the table, forced to listen to two men berate her for something they could barely understand.

It was disgusting and demeaning and before she knew it the anger she'd previously felt inside her began building up again; coating her stomach and her chest, burning her from the inside out; breaking her internal restraints. She could feel her heartbeat quicken and her hands begin to sweat, causing her vision to blur as she anxiously looked around the room, searching for some sort of exit.

She knew then that she needed to get out of there fast. She needed to rip off her handcuffs and find a way out, so closing her eyes, she pictured herself doing those things, causing both officers to abruptly stand from their chairs.

Focusing hard, she then ripped her wrists out of the steel, opening her eyes again to see the version of herself she'd conjured up laughing at the lack of coordination of the two men who had begun chasing her around the table, fumbling to grab the guns located on their holsters as she leapt and twirled around the room, making a big show of it all.

As they moved, Avis pressed her lips together in amusement and gripped her wrists, making sure to remain as still as possible as they circled around the back of her chair.

Once they were out of the way though, she made a break for the doorway, causing the illusion of herself to fade away into nothing once she looked back at the officers and raised her middle finger.

 _"Somebody grab that fucking mutant!"_ She heard one of them say as she ripped open the door, barely caring to close it on her way out, because she knew in the end it wouldn't matter. She'd get out of this place whether or not it killed her, which unfortunately was what the opposing side was anticipating.

Having been flagged as a threat by not only the NYPD, but also the FBI, amongst other private organizations, the entire building of officers were prepared for her escape, standing at the end of the hallway with guns drawn and bated breath.

Noticing this, Avis immediately stopped in her tracks and raised her hands, taking a moment to conjure up an image of the largest bovine she could to the forefront of her mind before sending it running.

Grunting and groaning, the animal kicked back it's legs and blew through the hallway, bouncing off the sides of the walls violently until it eventually evaporated within the still standing crowd, causing her to drop her hands in shock, along with her jaw.

People always fell for her tricks; always ran away screaming, horrified by the sudden presence of whatever it was she wanted them to see, so why weren't they doing that now? Were they not scared? Did they not fear her?

Confused, Avis abruptly stepped forward, listening to the sounds of cocking guns before quickly stopping again and taking a deep breath.

 _"Avis, it's been a while."_ She heard a voice call out, causing her to cautiously look around the crowd, heart pounding against her chest in anticipation.

As swiftly as that feeling began though, she found herself met with the answer to her anxieties, prompting her to frown at the image of Nick Fury pushing his way through the grouping of officers until he made it to the front.

Once there, he let out a casual chuckle and crossed his arms over his chest, watching as Avis merely let out a sigh of defeat and walked to his side without another word.


	2. Chapter 2

"SO, DO I GET A PHONE CALL OR...?"

With a snort, Fury casually glanced in Avis's direction, watching as she desperately tugged at the restraints on her wrists, grumbling under her breath at the lack of comfort.

Once again finding herself immobilized by the cold steel, she couldn't help but feel pretty stupid. Not only had she let her guard down, resulting in the death of another mutant, but now —for the second time today— she was being whisked away to some high security facility, handcuffs and all.

"This isn't prison," Fury replied blandly. Both of them were seated in the back of an armoured vehicle, a pair of SHIELD agents firmly planted on either of Avis's sides, while Fury sat directly across, staring at her with an expression of amusement. "You can call whoever you want when we're done."

"Done with what?" She raised her brow curiously and leaned back, pressing the back of her head against the vibrating wall behind her, watching as he merely sighed.

Like usual, Fury was giving her little to no information —something he'd done the last time they'd met. It was annoying, but unsurprising, and quickly made her realize that no matter how many stupid questions she asked at an attempt to get under his skin, she'd most likely fail to get the answers she wanted, leaving her at a loss.

"Okay, well, it's obvious you aren't taking me somewhere to put a bullet in my head, so I suppose that's good," she commented, flashing him a sly smirk.

"The day's still young," he instantly replied, matching the casual tone of her voice.

It was something she weirdly respected in Fury —his ability to remain casual, even during the most stressful conversations, prompting her to let out a small chuckle. "So, what? You're throwing me in a cell? Holing me up in one of those glass containers like last time?"

He responded with a quick shrug. "Maybe."

"If that's the case, feel free to just pull over and put me out of my misery now," she said jokingly, even though she was definitely serious.

Because in the end, the last thing Avis wanted was to feel stuck —to be trapped without a purpose; something she guessed was a possibility with Fury around.

"I can assure you it's not that either," he sighed, making quick eye contact with each of the agents before moving his gaze back to her. "I just want your help."

Rolling her eyes, Avis thought back to the last time Fury wanted her help, wondering if the situation would be similar. "Help with what?"

There was a long pause before Fury spoke, but when he did Avis didn't hear him. Instead, she heard the sound of screeching tires, followed by the disruption of honking horns and yelling voices as the vehicle rolled to an abrupt stop.

Looking around, she watched Fury's brows contort into an expression of concern, prompting him to stand to his feet and move towards the back door, taking a moment to look back at the agents. Almost immediately both of them followed, moving their hands to their holsters, while Fury unlocked the door.

"What's happening?" Avis asked, even though she knew they wouldn't have an answer. Like her, they were absolutely clueless as to what was happening, leaving her to wonder if perhaps someone was here to save her.

It seemed like a shot in the dark given the fact that she didn't have any allies. Over the past few years she'd pretty much cut all of her ties; including the ones with her own family who honestly weren't really all that great anyway. She didn't have anyone to help her, so the hope of some stranger appearing out of the blue to come to her aid was short lived.

"I swear to god if this is another ambush," Fury muttered under his breath. His head bobbed as he spoke, causing Avis to narrow her eyes as she watched him then kick open the door and stick out his gun; an immediate hush falling over the small crowd inside the vehicle.

As quickly as the silence came though, the sound of yelling erupted all over again, followed by Fury sighing in annoyance before jumping onto the pavement outside.

"Morris, what the hell do you think you're doing?" Avis heard him yell, causing her body to slowly lean towards the opening of the door out of curiosity.

Outside, Fury was standing alongside a pair of men, both of them bruised and battered, dripping with exhaustion.

"My job, I thought," the older of the two said. He was pale as a ghost with skin that hung loosely around his bulging eyes, causing Avis to wonder just how good his eyesight must be. "Weren't we supposed to meet up?"

"At the location we discussed," Fury stated, his voice dripping with annoyance. "Not in the middle of the goddamn highway."

_"Oh."_

Next to who Avis now assumed was Morris, a taller man with dark curls and thick facial hair let out a hearty laugh, causing Fury to glare so intensely that instead of continuing his laughter the man quickly stopped and swallowed hard.

"Well, uh, if it's alright with you, you mind if we just hop in the back now?" Morris asked, easing the tension as he hooked his thumb over his shoulder. "The kid blew up my car."

"How'd he do that?" Avis called out of curiosity.

As soon as her voice was heard the three men poked their heads into the back, moving their gazes past the two agents that stood firmly near the entrance until their eyes met hers.

At that point Avis focused on the other apparent mutant, giving him an affirming nod as she took a closer look.

Like her, there were handcuffs on his wrists, along with a set around his ankles, which Avis immediately thought was a bit much. He was dressed in sweats, all black with dark shoes to match and looked absolutely dishevelled in comparison to her, making her thankful her _capture_ wasn't so messy.

"He lit his hand on fire and stuck it in the filler cap," Morris deadpanned, giving his mutant friend the side eye.

"I'm not going to apologize for that," the mutant responded almost proudly, adjusting his stance so that his back was straighter. "You attacked me so I retaliated."

"By nearly _killing me_ ," Morris said. "And just for the record, I didn't attack you. I walked up to you to talk and you freaked out and punched me in the face."

"I didn't—"

"Alright, enough," Fury scolded, raising a hand to silence them both. "We don't have time for who did this and who did that, we have a job to do, so get in the back and shut up before I leave you here to find your own way back."

Without so much as a breath between them, the two then hopped in the back, taking the pair of spots directly across from Avis alongside Fury, while the two previous agents returned to theirs, mumbling jokes at Morris's expense under their breaths as one of them hit the wall, signalling the driver to move forward.

When he did, Avis settled back into her original position, placing the back of her head against the wall with a sigh.

For some odd reason it felt almost relaxing having another mutant around. It wasn't often she found herself in their company, often opting to put as much distance between herself and anyone else with powers as possible. It was almost nice, reassuring even, knowing that she wasn't the only one who was stupid enough to get caught.

"So, uh, any _particular_ reason why you're capturing mutants and taking them to this elusive location of yours?"

At the sound of Avis's rather unceremonious response to the situation, Fury merely huffed and glanced between her and the other two men, shaking his head. "Like I previously said, I want your help."

"What kind of help?" The mystery mutant asked.

"He won't answer you until we get to our destination," Avis said mockingly, fighting back the urge to roll her eyes.

"Which is where?" He then asked, turning to face her.

With a shrug, Avis quickly directed her attention back to Fury who's annoyed state was continuing to grow, causing her to smirk. "Yeah, where are we going anyways? SHIELD? SWORD? Perhaps the Pentagon?"

"Oh, the Pentagon would be cool."

"It would be, wouldn't it?"

"I highly doubt we're going there, though. Us criminals can't be trusted with the secrets of the Pentagon."

"Speak for yourself, I'm pretty good at keeping secrets."

"Are you now?"

"Yeah. What about you?"

"I'm alright, I suppose. Depends on the secret. Some are easy to keep hidden, but obviously if one is juicy enough I'll—"

"Ethan, for the love of god, would you _please_ shut up?" Morris groaned, throwing his head against the wall.

Laughing, both of them pressed their lips together and glanced around the room, noting the unimpressed glances they received from the rest of the group.

Weirdly enough, Avis felt almost happy about it, causing a smile to creep across her lips as she attempted to steal awkward glances with the funny man across from her, suppressing the urge to laugh again whenever they made eye contact.

It was like that the rest of the ride, both of them remaining on the edge of silence as the vehicle blindly drove them around, leaving them both to wonder where it was exactly they were going.

Gathering what little information she had, Avis was almost positive they were headed to SHIELD. Based on previous experience, and the fact that Fury was literally the organization's Director, it made the most sense. He wouldn't be doing something so obviously above his pay grade like tracking down people with powers if he wasn't directly involved.

Which begged the question: what did he want from them? Was he there to recruit them? And if so, for what? Had he been following them all this time or was this a new thing? Also, after all of this was over, what did they get out of it?

Various questions circled through Avis's mind the entire way there, leaving her brain a jumbled mess of unfinished thoughts and outlandish assumptions once they'd finally arrived.

Still puzzled by it all, once the vehicle had come to a full stop and the back door was opened, she followed the rest of the group silently outside, still going through everything in her head.

She was distracted to say the least —too distracted to fully realize that they'd been brought to the Avengers Tower and were now inside the elevator on their way to the very top.

Meanwhile next to her, Ethan was practically vibrating with excitement, eyes wide, lips drawn into a wide smile as he looked around at each individual person who stood in the enclosed space with him.

"Are we about to meet the Avengers right now?"

The sound of his voice pulled Avis out of her thoughts, causing her to rapidly blink and look over. "Wait, what?"

_"The Avengers,"_ Ethan repeated. "You know? Earth's mightiest heroes or whatever?"

At that point he sounded more like a kid on Christmas than a mutant arsonist who just destroyed a SHIELD agent's car in the middle of the day, causing her to scrunch up her face in confusion. "You mean those guys who flaunt around in their suits and pretend like they own the place?"

Offended, Ethan dropped his jaw and looked over at Fury. "Is she serious right now?"

"Probably," he said, remaining completely uninterested.

"Are you seriously, serious right now?"

With a shrug and a nod, Avis watched as Ethan then threw his head back in disgrace, a mangled groan escaping his lips just as the elevator stopped at their floor, prompting the agents to lead them out into the hallway.

"I just think they're too full of themselves," Avis explained as they walked along the darkened hardwood floors. "They say they're for the people, yet they destroy everything they come into contact with. It's bullshit and gives the rest of us a bad name."

Next to her, Fury quietly hummed and looked over, the two of them sharing a quick tension filled look before Avis ultimately looked back down at the floor, brows knitting together in slight frustration.

"Well, you better warm up to them, seeing as you're going to be training with them," he deadpanned, taking a few steps forward before stopping in front of one of the doorways to tap the keypad beside it.

Shocked by his words, Avis immediately stopped in her tracks, watching as the doors in front of her parted to reveal a very angry looking Tony Stark, arms crossed against his chest in obvious disapproval. "You're late, agents."

As if on cue, Fury snorted and clapped him on the shoulder as he passed. "Yeah, well, you can blame the fire starter for that one."

_"Hey!"_

Turning on his heel, Tony followed Fury further into the room, while Morris remained alongside Avis and Ethan at the entrance, dismissing the other agents entirely.

"I don't care who did what or why and when," Tony replied, throwing his hands wildly about as he spoke. "I just care about punctuality. I'm a busy man, Fury, and I don't have time to babysit your little recruits."

Ignoring him completely, Fury stopped near the centre of the room, pausing to glance around for a quick moment. "Did the other two show up yet?"

Rolling his eyes, Tony silently motioned to a far section of the room where another pair of men sat, both silently sulking in their seats.

Almost immediately Avis recognized the one sitting the farthest away. He was that psycho that had attacked New York a couple of years back —the one that enlisted a _literal_ fucking alien race to take over the planet.

Like the other guy (who appeared equally uninterested in their sudden arrival) he was just casually sitting there, arms outstretched across the backing of the couch like he owned the place, causing Avis to look at him, confused.

She couldn't help but wonder what exactly she'd done to become aligned with such a shitty person. Because despite murdering a single person, she definitely had no reason to believe her behaviours were comparable to his. He was an actual terrorist —an alien terrorist who had invaded a planet with the intention of taking over. It was an act _way_ worse than her measly murder charge or what she assumed were Ethan's countless counts of arson.

"Avis, Ethan," Fury eventually said, motioning for the two of them to come closer before turning his attention to the other two. "Meet Mock and Loki. _Your teammates_." 


	3. Chapter 3

AVIS KNEW IT WAS IMPOLITE TO STARE. 

Yet, as everyone moved through the room, making their way to the table to discuss the details of their so-called team, she couldn’t help but let her gaze linger on Loki, eyes drawn in curiosity. 

Having been on the opposite end of the country when the New York attack first occurred, the only glimpses she’d caught of him up until this point were what she’d seen on the news, making his tall, mostly lean stature almost intimidating. 

In fact, in comparison he was practically a humanesque skyscraper, the level of his eyes towering above everyone else’s as they continued their stride, eventually taking their seats at the table. 

Avis wasn’t sure how, but somehow she’d ended up in the spot right next to him, causing the hairs on the back of her neck to stand up as she inevitably turned away, focusing her attention on Tony and Fury who stood at the head of the table. 

“Alright kiddos, hunker down. This meeting’s gonna take a while,” Tony said, clapping his hands together enthusiastically. 

The sound, despite the lack of volume, somehow caused Avis to jump in her seat, prompting a rush of embarrassment to wash over her face as she quickly glanced around to see if anyone had noticed. 

The last thing she wanted was to show any sign of weakness around her peers, causing her to quietly clear her throat and re-adjust her posture as Tony went on to start talking about the terms and conditions of what it was they were being propositioned with. 

“Little on edge, are we?” The voice next to her whispered, sending another series of shivers up her spine. 

It was the kind of voice that sounded more like a purr than anything else, making it hard for her to focus on the presentation before her. So much so that, for a moment, she debated turning completely around so that she could get a better look at him. 

She wanted to see what he looked like up close and personal, because from what she’d managed to witness, she could tell he was absolutely stunning. With pale skin and bright eyes; dark hair and a cunning smile —he was the definition of an attractive man. A simple fact that made her stomach ache. 

Because knowing herself pretty well, Avis was aware of the faults she had in regards to _pretty individuals_. She always trusted them far too much, far too quickly; something that she’d recently been working on correcting.

It was one of her many personal downfalls. Just like her inability to back down from a challenge, which was what she knew Loki was exploiting. She could practically hear the smirk forming on his lips, egging her on in deathly silence as she fought back the urge to carelessly whip around in her seat and smack the smug look that he most likely held right off his face. 

With a sigh though, Avis instead quickly composed herself, throwing away the idea in favour of merely glancing over her shoulder and smirking back. “And why would you think that?” 

“You’re all tense.”

“Well, I’m still in handcuffs,” she replied, casually raising her wrists. “And I did just get ambushed in a precinct not too long ago.”

Raising his brow, Loki leaned slightly forward, moving his hand to grip the backing of her chair, suddenly appearing interested. “Sounds like quite the predicament.”

“Indeed it was.”

“How did you find yourself there?” 

“I was—“

Suddenly, the clicking of fingers pulled them away from the strangely natural push and pull of their conversation, causing Avis to look over at Morris with narrowed eyes. “Class hasn’t been dismissed kids, ears on Stark,” he said, a hint of threat present in his words. 

Releasing an unimpressed sigh, Avis then gave Loki one final glance before turning around, watching as he merely rolled his eyes, making a show of releasing her chair to defiantly cross his arms over his chest. 

As he did, Tony shook his head and scoffed, watching him with cautious eyes as he returned back to his spiel. “Alright, like I was saying, you people are what SHIELD considers at risk mutants,” he began, motioning across the table. “You’re powerful, more so than most, but your abilities aren’t fully developed. You’re loose cannons.” 

“Loose cannons?” Mock repeated, the tone of his voice filled with frustration and annoyance. It was the first time that Avis had heard him speak since she first noticed his presence, prompting her focus to lock solely onto him. “The only reason we’re _loose cannons_ , as you so fucking stupidly put it, is because you’re the ones hunting us down.”

“Hunting is a broad term,” Tony responded casually, moving a hand into the air to better assert his words. “I mean, contextually you’re right, we are hunting you, but not in the literal, uh… vicious sense, more so professionally.” 

“The fuck is that supposed to mean?”

“It means they’re recruiting us,” Loki interjected coldly. 

Hearing the sudden lack of compassion in his voice, Avis swallowed hard and returned her gaze to the head of the table, watching as Fury let out a deep sigh. 

At that point it was obvious to her that he was most likely questioning his decision. Being surrounded by a group of highly violent delinquents, all of whom felt a lack of trust towards him made it clear that maybe he hadn’t completely thought everything through. 

Yes, he was the head of SHIELD and yes, most likely he had unlimited resources in his favour thanks to a multitude of different allies (including Tony), but at the end of the day, the four of them weren’t the type to just roll over and die.

They were strong minded, willing to do the impossible to maintain their freedom, which Avis knew would most likely be a cause for concern. 

Especially considering that, on a good day, SHIELD could barely handle the defiance of a single mutant without having to double up their forces, so how on earth were they going to handle the four of them?

Assuming what Morris said about Ethan was true, it was apparent that he could cause a lot of damage on his own. Take that and mix it in with a homicidal Asgardian hellbent on chaos, an illusionist with no regard for the rules, and a guy who clearly had it out for the common enemy, and it was probable that this whole situation might not end the way Fury hoped. 

Without thinking, Avis raised her hands into the air, feeling the roughness of the handcuffs push against her skin uncomfortably as she watched Tony wiggle a finger in her direction.

“Uh, yes, you, the girl.”

“Okay, first of all, that feels a little bit sexist,” she immediately pointed out, causing the Asgardian prince to snicker quietly behind her. “Second of all, could you maybe hurry this up? I know you’re like, into the whole dramatic vibe, but honestly you’re playing to the wrong crowd here.” 

“Wrong crowd?” Tony immediately scoffed, rubbing his eyes in frustration. “You do realize who you’re sitting next to, right?”

Casually looking back, she shot Loki a look of amusement before looking back and shrugging her shoulders. “A god with an authority problem?”

Opening his mouth to respond, Tony was quickly cut off by the sounds of laughter erupting throughout the table, causing Fury to sigh. 

“Listen, I get none of you are impressed with the way we’ve handled the situation, but three out of the four of you were already on the run, so we didn’t have much of a choice here,” he said. 

“I mean you could’ve just not—“ 

Cutting Avis off, Fury continued, “With that being said, I need you all to know that we mean no harm. We didn’t bring you here with the intention to punish you.”

“So, what are we here for then?” Ethan chimed in. 

“If you’d take a second to shut the fuck up, maybe I’d be able to tell you.”

The changing of his tone, albeit somehow hilarious to the group, caused everyone to fall silent as they listened to him then begin his spiel, taking his time throughout to explain everything in as much detail as possible. 

Apparently Fury needed the four of them for a rather specific mission. HYDRA, like always, was up and running again, causing a panic within the world of government thanks to some on some sort of project involving the study of mutant genetics.

“It’s called _Project Regen_ ,” he said.

As soon as Avis heard the name she felt her stomach drop. Her hands, which up until then had been resting against the tabletop, anxiously moved to her face, while the beating of her heart began to quicken, resulting in a lack of focus to arise throughout her mind.

On more than one occasion she’d heard that name —experienced the implications of it first hand, leaving her almost breathless as she locked eyes with Fury, noticing the apologetic look that crossed his face. 

It became clear then that this favour wasn’t going to be as cut and dry as he was explaining. HYDRA, the very people Avis had spent the majority of her life avoiding, were still looking for her and Fury knew it.

He knew it the last time they’d met too. 

“Is this about the uh, the… the thing?” Avis was surprised to hear her own voice, pausing to swallow hard once she saw the way the rest of the group was looking at her. 

Based on their confused expressions, it was most likely that they had no knowledge of what was going on, making it almost harder for her to speak about it. 

Like before, she didn’t want to be deemed as weak in comparison. She wanted to be strong and powerful and respected, even though deep down she knew all that would change once the truth came to light.

“Unfortunately, yes,” Morris piped in quietly. 

Like Avis, he looked almost nervous; the whites of his eyes wide with fear as he looked over at Fury who merely released a deep breath. 

“For those of you who are unaware, Project Regen has been around for quite some time. After the slaughter of Tønsberg in 1942, HYDRA was able to get their hands on the Tesseract, a rare and ancient artifact used to house one of the six Infinity Stones,” he said, glancing around the room. “Now, it’s common knowledge that with it they used its power to enhance their weaponry in order to aid them in the second World War. However, it’s also less commonly known that they also used it for another more intricate purpose.”

At that point the interest in the room had piqued, everyone’s eyes drawn to Fury’s in maximum interest, 

It made Avis’s increasingly nervous state continue to rise, prompting her to release a deep breath that immediately caught Loki’s attention. 

Sneakily, he looked at her from the corner of his eye, watching as her chest rose and fell, her body becoming shakier with each moment that passed.

He knew right away that her involvement was much more important than Fury was letting on. Ever since the mention of HYDRA she’d practically been on the edge of her seat, fidgeting endlessly with the cuffs on her wrists. 

It was easy to infer, based on her anxious behaviours, that something must’ve happened between her and the organization, causing his thoughts to wander as Fury’s voice remained ongoing throughout the room. 

“Unfortunately, the majority of details of such a purpose are unknown, but thankfully with the information we do have, we know that with your select skill sets we’ll be able to uncover more.”

“By select skills do you mean Avis?” Loki asked abruptly, raising his brow. 

Without missing a beat, Avis turned to face him, brows drawn to the centre of her face in complete and utter disbelief, while the rest of the team looked to her, pondering the weight of Loki’s words. 


	4. Chapter 4

“SO, WHO ARE YOU?”

Avis always thought she knew the answer —thought she understood the details of her life like every other person on the planet, despite it never feeling entirely right. Growing up she always felt a sort of disconnect to her own existence. Like instead of herself she was this weird amalgamation of the memories that the people closest to her had made up. 

Nothing they said about her ever felt real, instead it felt foreign, like they’d taken her entire life story and shoved it into the mind of someone else. Every action or word said aloud felt like a projection of something she was required to be, so she became it, fearing that if she didn’t she’d be confronted with the potential reality that she wasn’t who everyone said she was —that instead, she was something entirely different. 

It was a fact that always sat at the back of her brain, only ever creeping further outward when she was alone and felt safe. Lying in bed, she’d often wonder if she was crazy, and if so, wondered if maybe there was some sort of medical explanation for it all.

Chemical imbalances were a pretty common thing that happened to all kinds of people, so maybe that was what was happening? Maybe her out of body experiences were something purely mental and not actually real like she thought they were? Maybe she _was_ just Avis Finch, a regular girl from Washington state with nice parents, living in a middle class home?

Because other than her own thoughts, she didn’t really have any reason to believe otherwise. From what she could tell people didn’t treat her strangely. They didn’t know how she felt on the inside so to them she was just a normal person with normal goals. She wasn’t an imposter in her own body.

_She was just her._

“Avis Finch, aged twenty-seven, born in Shoreline, Washington to Jean and Daniel Finch…” Tony read the entirety of her file out loud, while Morris took off her handcuffs, letting a sense of relief rise throughout her system. 

As soon as the question of who she was was brought to the attention of the room she immediately began to panic, unsure how to explain. All her life she didn’t really have a clue on who or what she was, so to suddenly have to convey that feeling to a room full of people who were very much confident in their own personhood was a bit intimidating. 

“Wait, am I missing something?” Ethan interjected, eyes slightly narrowed as he glanced around the room. 

Awkwardly, Avis shook her head, moving her hands to rub her wrists interchangeably as she muttered a quick _thank-you_ to Morris before refocusing her attention on the question. 

Once again, she wasn’t entirely sure how to answer the question that was thrown her way, yet she knew she at least had to attempt to. These people, despite knowing very little about her and vice versa, were her people now. They were involved in this just as much as her, meaning she had to trust them. 

“According to my birthing records I am who I say I am,” she stated, moving her gaze across the room. 

Unsurprisingly, everyone stared back in confusion, brows drawn to the centre of their faces as they watched her let out a deep sigh. 

“I don’t know when it happened, but at some point I started not feeling like myself… like I was this other person with memories that didn’t really match up with what other people were saying,” she explained, pausing to look down at her hands to collect her thoughts. “At first I thought I was just like, super fucked up or whatever, like I was bipolar or some shit, but then I started having these really vivid dreams of myself as this entirely different being doing things that didn’t make sense.” 

“Things like…?” Mock questioned.

“I don’t know, uh, things like… trying to smuggle the Tesseract out of Tønsberg, Norway in 1942,” she replied with a shrug.

Almost immediately Loki let out a scoff. “You mean to tell me that you, a mere mortal, were at the Destruction of Castle Rock Tower?” 

Without so much of a thought Avis nodded in response, even though she knew he thought otherwise. “I mean, I think I was, but again, I don’t really know, because whatever shit that’s going on in my brain doesn’t make a whole lot of sense.” 

“Neither does you being there,” he quickly retorted. “After Asgard defended it from the Jotunheim it—“

“Became a place of worship. Yeah, I know.” 

Rolling her eyes, Avis quickly tried her best to contain her frustrations, knowing deep down that the whole idea seemed pretty far fetched. She was just a mutant after all. She wasn’t some otherworldly being who could time travel or live forever. 

Yet, despite all that, she was almost certain she had been there. Every time she envisioned it she could vividly see herself there. She could see the chaos and the destruction, all the lives lost around her. She could feel the way the fabric of her cloak hung heavily across her shoulders; the way it made her skin itch as she ran through the grass, trying her best to remain hidden. She could remember the heat that radiated off her face; the constant outpour of sweat as she dove between the alleyways, avoiding the strange men that had infiltrated her home out of nowhere. 

Every single detail she could remember. 

“Again, I know none of this makes any fucking sense —trust me, I’ve long since accepted it, but I’m telling you, I’m sure I was there, which I think is why HYDRA’s revamping Regen.” 

“Wait a minute, go back. What’s Regen again?” Ethan asked, raising his hand excitedly. 

“That’s what we don’t know,” Fury responded, releasing probably the hundredth sigh he’d had since the meeting started. “We assume it has to do with the power of the Tesseract considering most of HYDRA’s studies do, but beyond that and what we know from Avis we’re still in the dark.” 

“How do you know that she’s even involved?” Mock responded with a nod of his head. 

Making eye contact with Fury, Avis took a moment to collect her thoughts before ultimately leaning back in her seat and rubbing her face. Now more than ever she was regretting her decision to merely follow Fury out of the precinct. Looking back, she should’ve at least put up a little bit of a fight, something to show him that she _still_ didn’t really want his help, even though she knew she probably needed it. 

It would’ve made things easier in the long run. If she’d escaped she could’ve just continued her life under the radar, bouncing around from place to place rather than spending her time sitting in a room full of big angry men, giving her skeptical glances as she poured out what essentially was a life’s worth of trauma out onto the table before them. 

“A couple of years ago HYDRA recruited me. Told me they’d give me a safe place to stay in exchange for doing some tests,” she began. 

As soon as she started speaking again the whole room pretty much fell into trance, hanging onto her every word as she explained the details of her time there. 

“They were studying the DNA of various mutants. How different mutations did different things and, if spliced together, how’d they ultimately react. At first they just did things like blood and fitness tests, y’know like regular medical stuff, but then things got weird and they started asking me to do all this stuff that I couldn’t actually do.”

Unsurprisingly, Ethan raised his hand again, prompting Avis to almost laugh while motioning for him to speak. “What’d they want you to do?” 

“Heal myself.”

Barely above a whisper, Avis then went on to explain the gorier details of her time spent at the facility —how they deliberately hurt her, using whatever tactics they could to try to get her to perform an act she was almost certain she wasn’t capable of doing. 

They’d bruise and cut her; break her sometimes if they were feeling a little extra stressed out that day, essentially turning her into some sort of company punching bag for their own enjoyment. 

“I was there for almost a year before SHIELD showed up,” she eventually concluded, making quick eye contact with Fury before returning her gaze to her lap. 

“You’re obviously important to them, then,” Loki said. 

For some odd reason his voice was strangely sympathetic, like somehow along the line he’d switched back to actually caring rather than being aggravated by the idea of her potentially lying about the Norway debacle. 

“I guess so, yeah.” 

After that there was a long pause, prompting Avis to sort of fall into her usual rhythm of distractive thinking, hoping it would calm her nerves. 

Out of habit she would always look around the room and pinpoint various items. Scanning them carefully while studying their structures and thinking about the importance of them. 

Embarrassingly enough, despite usually focusing on objects, somehow her eyes drew themselves to Loki, causing a feeling of warmth to rise across the base of her face. 

Like she wanted to earlier, she glanced at the structure of his facial features, taking every little bit of him in with as much secrecy as she could. 

It was like a little game to her, seeing how long she could stand to stare at the brightness of his brooding face without him noticing. 

Because the last thing she wanted to be caught doing was staring. Sure, he was probably the most beautiful creature she’d ever had the pleasure of laying her eyes on, but she could tell almost immediately by the way that he carried himself that if he knew she felt that way he’d definitely hold it against her. 

It was a quality that most people she found herself attracted to had; that air of arrogant confidence. It always pulled her in more than she cared to admit, beckoning her like a poisoned apple, tempting her in the worst way. 

_“Avis?”_

Immediately panicking, she looked over at Fury, pressing her lips together in slight embarrassment. 

“Perhaps we should call it a night,” Tony chimed in. 

Plastered across his face was a wide smirk, which in turn made her realize that him and most likely everyone else had definitely picked up on the staring, prompting the idea of escaping in the middle of night to pop into her head. 

“Alright kiddos. If you would like to head to sleep your bedrooms are down the hall to the left,” Tony added, moving his arms around like he was conducting traffic. 

Without saying another word, Avis stood from her seat and wandered to the other side of the room, pressing her palms roughly against the sides of her head as she moved out into the hall, muttering a few choice words under her breath. 

Being dragged to SHIELD to confront her traumatic past was the last thing she expected to happen when she woke up this morning. Well, that and murdering a man, but somehow that was less important. 

Yet here she was, anxiously wandering through the halls of the Avengers tower, wondering what her next move was. 

Because on one hand she could stay. Maybe learn more about her past and get some revenge, neither of which sounded _entirely_ awful.

On the other hand though, she could also leave. At least with that option she wouldn’t have to reveal anymore personal information. Plus, she probably wouldn’t have to see Loki ever ag—

_“Going to sleep already?”_

Stopping in her tracks, Avis closed her eyes in annoyance, mentally groaning at the silkiness of Loki’s voice as she turned on her heel. “Yes, because unlike you I haven’t had the luxury of sitting around on my ass all day making judgements at people.”

The insult flew off her tongue so effortlessly that even she was surprised by it, causing her to press her lips together tightly in slight regret, because even after the back and forth empathy Loki had offered her she didn’t necessarily want to get on his bad side. He was a God after all, not to mention a war criminal, which meant that his power probably far exceeded hers. 

“I suppose you’re right yes,” he responded, a quiet chuckle erupting near the end of his sentence. “My apologies.” 

“Don’t apologize. It’s fine. It’s not like it’s your fault that some terrorist organization is out to get me and that I’m also technically wanted for murder a—“

“Oh no, I’m not apologizing for that,” he cut her off humorously.

This time the same smirk that Tony had earlier graced his lips, prompting Avis to raise her brow. “Then what…?”

“The ogling at the table just now,” he responded, casually hooking his thumb over his shoulder. “I suppose that portion of your incredibly awful day was my doing, so apologies. I’ll try not to be as alluring the next time we have an important meeting.” 

“I, uh—” 

“Honestly, you must be absolutely exhausted from all that eye strain.” 

Opening her mouth to respond, Avis quickly averted her gaze, taking a moment to blink once she saw that Mock and Ethan were now coming their way, both of them smiling so wide that she immediately took a step away from Loki in fear of what they might think.

“Y’all need a knife down there?” Ethan called out, obnoxiously cupping his hands over his mouth. 

Next to him, Mock let out a loud laugh and jokingly pushed Ethan aside, both of them continuing to grin like idiots, while Loki merely sighed.

“What the fuck are you talking about?” Avis sternly asked, shooting them a puzzled look. 

“Y’know, like a knife?” Ethan reiterated, making a stabbing motion into the air. 

“What the hell would we need a knife for?” Loki replied. 

After another long pause filled with uncomfortable looks, Ethan eventually let out a groan of defeat, rubbing his face in annoyance. “ _A knife!_ You know? To like cut the sexual tension that the two of you so obviously have!” 

At the mention of sex mixed with the topic of Loki and herself, Avis instantly felt her body begin to move on autopilot. 

Her feet, which were once firmly planted on the group, quickly tore through the hall, taking her to the farthest room she could possibly find at an attempt to escape what she assumed was the most uncomfortable situation she’d ever been in. 

Then, once she reached that room she practically tore open the door, keeping her eyes forward until the door was firmly shut and she was finally alone for the first time in what felt like forever. 


	5. Chapter 5

THE TIMELINE WAS… COMPLICATED. 

That much had become obvious to Avis as she sat alongside the rest of the team, located at the same table as yesterday, listening to Fury spew out whatever information he deemed necessary for them to know.

Upon waking up, her and everyone else had quickly been summoned by JARVIS, telling them that they needed to meet Tony and Fury in the debriefing room again to go over some more of the details of what they’d talk about last night, causing her first reaction of the day to be a groan. 

Still exhausted, at first she debated on not going at all. Yesterday had been hard enough having been taken into custody twice, followed by the reveal of her less than exciting past. Not to mention the fact that she'd already embarrassed herself in front of everyone. The last thing she wanted to do was face another dreaded day in front of those people.

Yet, she eventually went anyway, understanding that Fury had essentially saved her ass. If it wasn’t for him she’d most likely be in jail by now, attempting to lay low while simultaneously trying not to die, therefore she basically owed him her life, even if she didn’t want to. 

(Which was annoying, because she definitely didn’t. She didn’t want to owe anyone anything ever.)

But at the same time she knew things sometimes happened for a reason. Whether she liked it or not _something_ was pushing her to be here. Pushing her to get answers for the things she’d been avoiding for so long, and she needed to double down on figuring it out. Starting with this god forsaken timeline from hell. 

“Wait a minute, can you just like… go back to that first part.” Motioning to the whiteboard behind Fury’s frame, Avis shot him a sheepish smile, watching as he merely let out a heavy sigh and threw back his head. 

Twice now the team had forced him to backtrack, causing his patience to wear increasingly thin. 

“I don’t understand what you’re missing,” Loki quickly interjected. Like usual, the playful tone in his voice caused Avis to roll her eyes and avoid —most likely— another smirk directed her way. “After the events of New York, Thor took the Tesseract to Asgard while I remained here in captivity like an animal until I was deemed worthy to leave in order to go back for it and return to Midgard.”

“Okay… wait, I think what I’m missing is the reason _why_ you brought it back in the first place,” Avis responded, narrowing her eyes at the paper in front of her. 

At some point she decided to start taking notes, thinking it’d help her in the long run. 

However, thanks to the amount of convoluted information they’d been given, she quickly lost track of where she was and ended up jotting down a bunch of details that didn’t make any sense, leaving her confused. 

“Well, like you I tried to align myself with HYDRA,” Loki said with a shrug.

“Why the fuck would you do that?” Mock asked, scrunching up his face in disgust. He too was confused, as was Ethan, but unlike Avis neither of them were willing to admit it out loud.

“He was working for us as a double agent,” Fury replied. “We knew Thor wouldn’t be willing to risk his relationship with his father so instead we sent Loki to get the Tesseract. Then, after he was successful in retrieving it, we sent him into a HYDRA base to strike a deal to get the sceptre.” 

“A deal?” Avis questioned, still very much confused. 

Nodding, Fury moved across the length of the whiteboard and wrote down a couple of choice words pertaining to his explanation, most of which still flew over Avis’s head completely. “In exchange for the Tesseract, HYDRA promised they would hand over the sceptre. Obviously, the plan was to eventually end up with both, but in the end things went south and well… you can pretty much fill in the rest.”

As soon as he finished his spiel, Ethan raised his hand, causing Morris to shoot him a dirty look. “This isn't a high school kid, speak your mind,” he said. 

“Oh, uh, right, uh…” Pausing to clear his throat, he then glanced around the table, maintaining eye contact with each member before eventually looking back at Fury and raising his brow. “Okay, so basically you guys need help retrieving these weird magic things, right? That’s what this whole thing’s about?” 

“Partially yes,” Fury replied with a nod. “However, part of this is also an opportunity for you guys to learn how to be more responsible with your abilities.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?” Mock asked defensively. 

“You aren’t doing society any favours right now,” Tony chimed in, standing from his seat to wander around the table nonchalantly. “They don’t see you as people. They see you as monsters who use your powers for selfish reasons.”

“ _Monsters?_ Man, I only rob banks. I don’t murder people like the rest of you guys,” Mock interrupted, motioning to both Avis and Loki who both shot him a glare. 

“Fair, but you’re still a criminal,” Tony quickly remarked, giving him just as dirty of a look as the one Morris had given Ethan. “In fact, you’re all criminals, whether you stole some petty cash or tried to take over an entire planet. The details don’t really matter. You’re all still wanted.” 

_Wanted._ Just thinking about the implications of that term sent a shiver up Avis’s spine, knowing how much it actually pertained to her now. All her life she’d been wanted by pretty much everyone. It was part of the reason she stopped caring about doing the right thing and instead focused on just doing what she wanted; knowing that no matter what she did —whether it was good or bad, she’d always been deemed a threat. 

She’d always been sought after to either be imprisoned or tested on or, like Loki mentioned yesterday, recruited for some bullshit cause like the one they were involved in now. 

“Okay, so basically we do this mission for you, learn to better control our powers, _yada, yada, yada_ —then what?” Changing her tone, Avis quickly turned to face Tony, giving him her best stare down at an attempt to appear more dominant. 

“I don’t know, you become Avengers?” 

At that point the entire room erupted in a fit of laughter, causing both Tony and Fury to just sigh, half expecting such a response.

“Laugh all you want, but just so you know, you do this for us and we’re all squared,” Tony added, dusting his palms dramatically to better showcase what he meant. 

“Oh, I highly doubt that,” Loki said dully. “You’ve been saying that same shit to me for the past year, yet here I still am, tied to your rope.” 

“The only reason you’re tied is because you keep causing problems,” Morris replied.

“Causing problems? _Me?_ ” Loki questioned with a smirk. 

It was the kind of smirk that immediately made Avis’s stomach drop, causing her to look back to her notes at an attempt to avoid looking at his face again. 

Since the meeting had begun she’d been trying her best to steer clear from even moving her head in his general direction, remembering the events of last night. She couldn’t believe she’d let her guard down like that, especially after everything she’d been through. She didn’t need anymore trauma in her life. She didn’t need to deal with stupid men who lacked morals, nor did she need to deal with whatever game he was playing by flirtatiously approaching her afterwards.

Even if it was tempting. 

“Look, guys.” 

Upon hearing Morris’s voice reenter the conversation, Avis looked back up, noticing he was now standing alongside Tony and Fury, motioning to the whiteboard. “I know this sucks, believe me. I ain’t too fond of having to deal with you guys either, but you know HYDRA. They don’t stop until they get what they want and what they want is to control the world, which is what’ll happen if we don’t go after them.” 

“Don’t you have the actual Avengers for this sort of thing?” Mock immediately countered, causing Morris to let out a sigh of annoyance and look towards Fury. 

“Yeah, but sometimes they can get caught up in other affairs,” he said. “Which is why you guys are here. We want you focused on this and nothing but this. From now on you eat, breathe, and sleep _this_ and you do it without complaints or you’re out. Am I clear?” 

With little room to argue, everyone pretty much shut up after that, prompting the meeting to continue until everyone felt comfortable enough to move onto the next phase, which apparently just involved a ton of paperwork. 

Groaning at the thought, Avis remained as interested as she could throughout, only asking questions when deemed appropriate as well as maintaining her focus on the task at hand, causing her mind to quickly tire as time went on. 

More than anything she hated meetings, so when Fury eventually announced that theirs was finally over, she instantly let out a sigh of relief, sinking into her chair in slight happiness. 

“Alright, well, now that the boring stuff is over, go rest,” Tony concluded, clapping his hands together in excitement. “Later tonight we’ll be having a little soiree on the top floor, so take advantage of your alone time while you can, because after seven your ass better be up there mingling with the rest of the squad.” 

Almost immediately, Loki let out an unimpressed moan, while Avis and the rest of the group stood up, watching in slight amusement as he dramatically closed his eyes. 

Without even thinking, Avis nudged his shoulder and shot him a smirk, noticing the annoyance laced throughout his gaze as he turned to face her. “Not a fan of parties, are we?” 

“Parties yes, Avengers no.” 

“Isn’t your brother a part of the Avengers?” Ethan asked, following behind Mock who was practically sprinting towards the doorway. 

“Your point?”

“You mean you guys don’t get along?” Avis asked sarcastically, moving her hand to the back of his chair. Out of habit, she ended up leaning on it for support, causing Loki’s displeasure in regards to the topic of his brother to instantly transition to something more positive, creating a weird sense of interest in the air.

“No not really. Siblings tend to part ways when one tries to manipulate the other.”

Furrowing her brow, Avis found herself wondering what exactly he meant by that. “Why’d you do that?”

“Bold of you to assume it was me,” he replied with a snort. 

“Well, wasn’t it?” 

Slightly at a loss for words, Loki shook his head and pursed his lips, taking the sudden moment of silence between them as an opportunity to look at her face, taking it all in. 

To him, her features were naturally flawless —big eyes, long nose, thick brows with dark wild hair. She was a simple beauty, most likely overlooked by the average Midgardian man, but to him, in that moment, she was something worth looking at. Something different, maybe even special, even if just for the time being. 

Noticing this, Avis quickly found herself becoming increasingly nervous at the way his eyes seemed to scan the length of her face, causing her to swallow hard and look away. 

At that point she realized they were the only two left in the room, a fact that only furthered her suddenly flustered state, because so far, the only other time she and Loki had been alone together he’d tried to flirt with her, which wasn’t necessarily something she wanted. 

However, at the same time, it was necessarily something she _didn’t_ want either. 

In fact, now that she was standing so close to him, watching him stare at her from the corner of her eye, she couldn’t help, but wonder what it’d be like to act on whatever this tension was. 

How it’d feel to just reach out and touch him; to kiss him; to tease him like she so desperately wanted to. It made her mind crawl with images of the two of them entangled together, skin brushing against skin, mouths moving t—

“Hey, I uh… forgot my phone.” 

Sighing at the awfulness of Morris’s timing, Avis quickly took a step away from Loki’s chair, moving her hand to her side as she awkwardly left the room, suddenly feeling way warmer than anticipated. 


	6. Chapter 6

“AH, NEWBIES. GLAD YOU COULD JOIN US.”

As soon as they stepped off the elevator, the team found themselves immediately being swept towards the bar by a very inebriated Tony, causing them all to collectively stare at one another in fear. 

“I want you to meet a few of your new colleagues.”

Barely paying attention to the slurred mess of sentences that followed after that, the four of them then reluctantly walked behind Tony through the crowded area, watching the way he moved his hips in time with the music; a short glass of whatever alcohol he’d decided to consume that night tucked neatly into the palm of his hand. He was ebbing and flowing between the bodies scattered throughout the room, smiling like he’d just won the lottery, even though in reality, he was just dragging around a group of antisocial misfits who hardly wanted to be there, all while wasted.

Ethan, who stood towards the back of the pack, poked his head in between Avis and Loki’s shoulders, causing the both of them to look over. “Is he always like this?” He asked, motioning to Tony who was now screaming something none of them could understand with excitement and raising his hands, prompting a pair of individuals by the bar to awkwardly laugh.

“Whenever alcohol is involved, yes,” Loki sighed.

In unison, Ethan and Mock cringed at his response, while Avis merely crossed her arms over chest, taking a moment to examine Tony in his suddenly drunken state. 

He looked unnaturally excited, the usual cheeky expression that adorned his face having been replaced with a wide, shit eating grin that weirdly lit up the room. It was the kind of grin that radiated way too much positivity for Avis’s liking, causing her to furrow her brow as she turned towards everyone else. 

“The fact that the world trusts that man astounds me,” she said, shaking her head as she watched Tony toss aside his now empty glass in favour of giving the dark haired man beside him an aggressive hug. 

“Yeah, well, money is power,” Loki replied, mirroring Avis’s crossed arm position as he spoke.

Subtly glancing over at him, she quickly noticed the way his eyes slightly narrowed at the pair of men before him, making her question the dynamics of their relationship. 

Because based on what little she knew about Loki and pretty much everyone else, she figured that he most likely hated the majority of those that were here. Who wouldn’t after their history.

“It’s bullshit if you ask me. People putting their faith into some dude with a robot kink,” Mock said, looking over at Tony with disgust. 

In response, Loki let out an amused snort and followed his gaze. “Yeah, well, not everyone can maintain that same amount of intellect.”

“Intellect? _Pfft_ , man it ain’t nothing to do with intellect. It’s just common sense; don’t trust an eccentric billionaire with your life.” 

“Why not?” Ethan asked, glancing between everyone. 

At that point Tony had tuned in that they were no longer listening, prompting him to loudly slur their names together to get their attention, all while simultaneously waving for them to come closer. As he did, they all collectively sighed in defeat, already knowing that they didn’t have much of a choice, because while Tony Stark was a man of many things, patience definitely wasn’t of one of them. 

“Team, meet Bruce Banner and Thor,” he said once they’d arrived, patting each man on the head.

Almost immediately, Bruce waved away his hand and offered the majority of them a polite nod, stopping to swallow hard once he made eye contact with Loki. 

“Ah, brother!” Thor immediately bellowed, reaching to clap Loki on the back. Like Tony, the smile across his face was bright, almost infectious; the complete opposite expression that Loki had, especially once he awkwardly flew forward at the contact of Thor’s hand. “Are these the new friends you were telling me about?” 

“I wouldn’t call them friends,” Loki muttered under his breath, scowling as he readjusted his posture in annoyance. “ _Coworkers against my will_ maybe, but definitely not friends.”

In fake offence, Avis dropped open her mouth while placing a hand on her chest. “What do you mean we’re not friends?”

She wasn’t sure where the sudden confidence had come from, or why she thought it’d be fine to just call him out like they actually were friends, because they definitely weren’t. If anything they were just strangers; forced to interact for the convenience of other people. 

She didn’t know anything about him or his past, other than what’d she heard from others —a detail she figured probably wasn’t the most accurate representation of his personhood. Because there were always two sides to every story; in this case, Loki’s vs. Everyone else’s, and although Avis knew he wasn’t the greatest guy in the world she still found herself questioning what exactly his intentions were in the grand scheme of things. Whether he was here on his own accord, working to regain the respect of those he’d wronged or if he was merely just here as a means to some sort of end. 

“Pardon my brother, lady…?”

Turning her attention back to the group, Avis told the Asgardian her name, watching as he then reached to grab her shoulder, giving it a reassuring squeeze. _“Lady Avis,”_ he repeated with a nod. “Apologies, but my brother knows very little in regard to friendships.”

Fighting the urge to laugh, Avis glanced over at Loki who’s jaw looked tight and angry, much like his eyes which had transitioned into thin slits of rage. 

“He doesn’t much understand the concept of being polite either, so please if you have any problems—“

_“Ah, what a lovely song. Avis, care for a dance?”_

The question had come out of nowhere, so much so that it was almost lost entirely in Avis’s mind, leaving her mouth gaping in response. 

At first she thought she must’ve heard him wrong —somehow imagined the entire thing— because there was no way in hell that Loki would just casually ask her to dance. He wasn’t nice enough to do that.

At least… that’s what she figured anyway. Again, knowing very little about him, it made it hard for her to process exactly what was happening, especially while being roughly pulled away before she could even manage to get a word in.

Gripping her tightly as they moved, Avis felt the pads of his fingers dig into her skin, pawing the flesh so desperately that when she finally tore her eyes away from the confused faces of those still at the bar, she couldn’t help but notice the rigid tension forming throughout Loki’s knuckles.

Pale skin stretched over bone, securing itself further into her arm; she found herself groaning at the impact, causing her to try and pull away.

“Is there a reason you’re manhandling me?” She asked defensively. 

Through gritted teeth, Loki let out a heavy breath and continued his pace until they were on the other side of the room, crowded by a group of people who were dancing around aimlessly. “I just needed an excuse to leave.”

“Then just leave?” She countered, somewhat confused. 

“What do you think I’m doing?” He practically spat, turning to face her. As he did he released her arm, causing her to let out a sigh of relief. 

“I don’t know, but it probably could’ve been done without trying to take my arm with you!” 

“Don’t be so dramatic, I barely touched you.”

“You literally pulled me away mid conversation!” 

“It’s not like the conversation was all that thrilling,” he countered, rolling his eyes. “Besides, it’s like not like you care for Stark, much less anyone else over there. I was practically doing you a favour.” 

While he was right —she didn’t much care for them— Avis still knew not to look a gift horse in the mouth, especially considering that gift was _kind of_ her life. “Yeah, well, unlike you at least I’m trying to get on their good side.” 

_“Good side?”_ He questioned with a laugh. “Darling, there are no good sides. Not in this line of work.”

Internally groaning, Avis turned away in response, focusing her attention back to the group near the bar. Unsurprisingly they were still staring at them, eyes drawn slightly together in curiosity as they watched them argue from afar, all of them appearing equally unimpressed. 

Almost immediately it sent a strange chill up her spine, causing her to bite her lip anxiously. She wasn’t a huge fan of being watched. It always made her feel too seen. Too vulnerable and unprotected, prompting thoughts of escape routes and defensive tactics to quickly flow to the forefront of her mind.

She wondered offhandedly if she could just make a run for if. If she could create some sort of diversion and slip away into the night. 

At first it seemed plausible. She could wait until the party was almost over. Everyone would be too drunk and distracted to even bother thinking of her presence and she could make a break for it.

“You know you tend to disappear a lot,” Loki said, interrupting her thoughts.

 _“Hm?”_ Blinking at an attempt to bring herself back into the conversation, she turned to look at him, noticing that the frustrated expression he’d once held was no longer present. 

“To your mind.” He pointed to her forehead with a smirk, causing Avis to raise her brow. “You always go in there and take ages to come out.”

“Do I?” 

“Yes.” He nodded. 

“Well, uh…” She trailed off, once again at a loss of what to say, because she definitely couldn’t be honest. She couldn’t tell him that she was thinking about an escape plan, even if she was almost certain he wouldn’t say anything, because at the end of it all there was always that small chance that he would. 

Based on his previous actions and television casts and other such things that commented on his character, she knew that he wasn’t the most trustworthy of people. He had ulterior motives just like her, and any sort of reveal of her hand could be detrimental. 

“I just don’t like being stared at,” she finished, partly telling the truth. 

“I wouldn’t have guessed,” he commented, a sudden smirk present. 

Rolling her eyes she reached out and tried to shove him, causing him to dart away skillfully and furrow his brow.

She wasn’t sure why, but in that moment despite everything telling her no, she found herself moving closer to him, craving his attention as she gracefully bumped his elbow with her own. “I bet they’re staring because we’re not dancing,” she said sarcastically, returning his smirk.

“And I bet they’re staring to make sure I don’t kill you.”

The suddenness of his statement threw Avis off guard, causing her heart to practically beat out of her chest once she felt Loki reach for her waist, pulling her flush against his chest. 

As soon as it happened she tried to pull away out of shock, feeling his grip tighten as he carefully slipped his fingers between her’s, chuckling almost darkly as he tugged her arm upwards and began carefully stepping around the general area, once again dragging her with him. 

She understood then they were now dancing, leaving her almost breathless as she looked down at their feet, monitoring the way his polished shoes seemed to gracefully dodge her own. 

It was impressive how fluid he moved, like he was floating across the hardwood floors, paying no mind to the obstacles in his way. His legs and hips moved effortlessly around in unison, his posture strong and proud as he led Avis around, smirking the entire time. 

“Who knew the alien could dance,” she commented, moving her gaze back up to meet his. 

“Alien? That’s a bit insulting don’t you think?”

“I mean, you’re not from Earth,” she pointed out with a shrug. “And aliens aren’t from Earth, ergo… _alien_.”

“Fair point,” he chuckled. 

“Plus, you’re green like an alien.” Motioning to the tie he was wearing, Avis watched him look down and slightly shake his head.

“Again, a bit insensitive, but better than what most have said about me.” 

“What have people said about you?” The question slipped off her tongue like melted butter, coating her face in warm embarrassment as she watched his chest rise and a fall, a sudden serious expression plastered across his face. 

“Truthful things,” he replied. “That I don’t deserve the hospitality that I’ve been given because I’m a traitor.” 

“For what you did to Earth?” 

“That, and on Asgard.” 

“What happened there?” 

He took another breath, turning his gaze away for a moment before letting it return and narrowing his eyes. 

At that point Avis knew to stop with the questions so instead of pressing onward she instead readjusted her stance and swallowed hard, trying to look as comfortable as possible, despite feeling otherwise.

“So, uh, the team is… cool?” Posing the statement as more of a question, she scrunched up her face almost immediately after, somehow feeling even more embarrassed than before.

“Mock’s alright. Ethan’s a bit…simple.”

Glancing over her shoulder, she focused her attention on the group once again, noticing that instead of staring they were all chugging back drinks, laughing amongst themselves. “Yeah, I mean, he seems pretty young.” 

“He’s twenty-two.” 

Whipping back around, she gave him a confused look, watching the edges of his lips turn up again. 

“Since I was already here upon your arrival I got to read your files,” he replied, practically reading her mind. 

“Oh, uh, what’d you think?”

“About yours?” 

She wanted to say yes, but opted to shrug instead, playing it off like it was nothing. “About everyones.” 

Letting out a soft snort, Loki moved his hand along her waist, using his fingers to slightly trail up her side as he repositioned himself closer. “Well, uh, Ethan’s was a bit dull. Very juvenile delinquent meets arsonist activist.”

“Interesting.” 

“And Mock’s was quite informative seeing as the only statements that seem to come out of his mouth are insults.” 

“Hey, sometimes he makes jokes,” Avis pointed out. 

“Hurtful ones, yes,” he replied with a nod. “However, unlike him the file didn’t fail to explain his power, which was more so what I was curious about.” 

At that moment Avis realized she hadn’t really thought much about Mock as a whole since she got here. Sure, he was quiet and reserved about himself, but like her he was experiencing the same inconveniences. He was still very much present in the situation, yet she hadn’t even bothered to ask him why he was here? What happened in his past to get him dragged into this mess? 

“What can he do anyway?” She found herself asking. 

“Modify the biology of his skin.”

“Meaning…?”

Once again falling silent to her question, she watched his gaze once again move away from her’s, causing her to mentally return to the topic of what exactly his deal was.

She assumed he probably wouldn’t tell her. Being obviously picky with the information he chose to reveal, she knew she’d most likely have to rely on an outside source for answers, prompting Thor as a potential candidate to pop in her head.

Out of everyone he definitely seemed like the type to prove himself helpful. Even after meeting him for a total of two seconds she could tell he was essentially a humanized version of a Golden Retriever, plus a few godly inclinations. He’d definitely tell her about Loki if she asked, especially if he already considered them _friends_. 

“Wait, you didn’t say anything about my file,” she eventually said, breaking the brief silence. 

Loki raised his brow, once again pulling her close as he took a quick sidestep, switching up his movements to the changing beat of the song. 

Almost stumbling, Avis knitted her brows together in slight annoyance and looked down, taking a moment to memorize the patterns of his feet before eventually looking back up and softening her face. 

She wasn’t sure why, but something about the way Loki always seemed to keep her on toes made her interest in him only grow. His personality, albeit a bit off putting, was strangely refreshing; almost fun, making the literal and figurative dance currently going on between them almost exciting.

She figured it had something to do with her unfortunate taste. Always falling for the wrong guy at the wrong time. 

It made her wonder if along with being cursed with powers she didn’t understand, she’d been cursed with poor taste. 

Because out of everyone she could be imaging in bed next to her, Loki was absolutely the poorest choice. He was dangerous and manipulative and although those two things were merely assumptions at this point, Avis still knew to tread as lightly as possible.

“Perhaps we could reserve the contents of your file for a more private setting.” 

Once again lost in her thoughts, Avis quickly found herself confused once she saw Loki move in closer. His stare practically melting through her own as he pressed his forehead against hers, releasing a heavy sigh.

She wasn’t sure what was happening —whether he was actually coming onto her or poking fun, but regardless she found herself holding her breath as she felt his own fan against the length of her face. 

Floating across her skin, creating goosebumps in its wake, she swallowed hard and slightly turned away, looking to the group at the bar for guidance only to be met with distraction.

They were all still drinking, staring at Tony as his arms wildly moved through the air around him. Avis assumed he was telling some sort of story, pulling them in with his dramatic words, which suddenly made her anxious, because why weren’t they looking at her? Why weren’t they staring like they were before, making sure she was okay? 

Because being this close; this intimate with Loki made her feel very unsafe. She didn’t like the way he gripped her lower back or the way his fingers trailed up the fabric of the foreign dress she’d found sprawled across her bed. She didn’t like his warm breath; the way it coated her face in patches of suffocating heat. Nor did she like the hungered look in eyes, watching her like she was his prey. 

Realizing this, Avis quickly untangled her fingers from his, shooting him a cautious look as she tore her body away from his and immediately began to walk away, feeling his gaze at the back of her head. 

She didn’t need to play his games. What she needed was to focus on herself. On the mission and the truth and everything that was important. 

Because Loki _wasn’t_ important. He wasn’t anything to her at all other than a piece of puzzle. All she needed was to use him for the bigger picture, _just like everyone else_.

Stepping in front of the elevator, Avis rapidly pressed the button, forcing herself not to glance over her shoulder in fear of Loki following behind. 

At that point her heart was practically beating it’s way up her throat, causing her to swallow hard at an attempt to combat the sudden panic that was trailing up her frame. 

She was sweating all over, practically bouncing on the balls of her feet, as she patiently waited for the elevator to ding upon its arrival, signalling her inevitable exit from the party. 

When it finally came and the doors parted she practically ran through them, mentally thanking whatever higher power she could that there were no people around. She wasn’t sure she could handle having to push through a sea of bodies right now, especially if she wanted to close the doors in time to—

Before she could finish her thought she felt her back collide with the wall behind her, sending a wave of distress to her brain as she tried to focus her vision.

 _“What are you?”_ Loki’s voice was dark; low, spoken through gritted teeth and seething with anger.

Avis wasn’t sure what exactly he was asking, but regardless she was terrified, her eyes widening at the sight of the doors closing behind her, locking her away from the safety of the room. 

She knew then that she was fucked. Absolutely and hopelessly fucked, because she couldn’t compete with a God. She didn’t have the combative skills of an Avenger yet and compared to Loki’s powers her’s were definitely inferior. 

Knowing this, she opened her mouth to answer, but was met with the feeling of cool fingers around her throat, pushing her further into the wall. 

They sucked the air right out of her, each digit strategically placing itself between the crevices of her windpipe. She couldn’t speak, much less think or breathe, which she figured was more so what Loki wanted. 

He wasn’t here for answers. He was here to intimidate her. Rile her up until she gave him whatever it was that he wanted. It was the same tactic men like him always used. Inserting fear and dominance. 

Part of her wanted to laugh at the unoriginality of it, but obviously with his fingers and palm slowly closing in further and further around her throat the only thing she could do was dig her nails into his flesh at an attempt to get him to stop. 

Not that it would work.

“You think you can just waltz in here like you own the place, _pretending_ like you—“

Somehow through the pain of it all she managed to hear the dinging of the elevator interrupt him, prompting Loki to groan and quickly release her. 

As he did, she immediately dropped down, feeling his hands catch her before she hit the ground, causing her to mimic his groan as he pulled her into his side, tucking one of her arms around his back. 

Closing her eyes, against her better judgement she pressed the side of her face against her chest and let out a couple of deep breaths, coughing in between them as she heard a woman’s voice flow throughout the elevator. 

“Not feeling well. Had a little too much.” She heard Loki say, prompting the woman to let out a loud laugh. 

After that it all went black. 


End file.
